United Nations member states didn’t hesitate in giving the nine official candidates vying for the position of U.N. chief their toughest job interview to date last week.
In the three-day publicly broadcasted informal dialogues, the nine secretary-general candidates answered a slew of questions — approximately 800 of them, collectively, according to the 1 for 7 Billion Campaign — ranging from their would-be policy concerning the alleged sexual abuse cases within the U.N.’s peacekeeping operations to concrete reform plans for the secretariat they’re hoping to lead.
Popular were questions on gender parity in terms of staffing, particularly in senior positions, as well as how the candidates plan to have a more balanced geographical representation at the global body — a recurring ask among member states from a number of developing nations.
About the author
Jenny Lei Ravelo@JennyLeiRavelo
Jenny Lei Ravelo is a Devex Senior Reporter based in Manila. She covers global health, with a particular focus on the World Health Organization, and other development and humanitarian aid trends in Asia Pacific. Prior to Devex, she wrote for ABS-CBN, one of the largest broadcasting networks in the Philippines, and was a copy editor for various international scientific journals. She received her journalism degree from the University of Santo Tomas.
